Meanwhile, the 108-inch wheelbase works great off-road, and the custom front and rear leaf springs give about 6 inches of total lift, while the Bilstein 9100-series shocks in the front and Bilstein 7100 shocks out back control those custom sproingers.
Beyond that, they added a Rancho steering stabilizer to complement the stock steering box to direct the rear BFG Mud Terrains and the front BFG All-Terrains. Even with the 6 inches of lift, the Superior Industries BFG-wrapped race wheels still have some rubbing issues at full compression and sharp turns.
The front axle is a Dana 44 that's custom-built with 5.38 gears, but it's still open running the stock disc brakes. The Dana 60, however, is running complementary 5.38 gears and is custom-built by Henry's with a spool and disc brakes. Both axles have been converted to run old-school, 5-lug rims. The top end of the brake system consists of a Corvette dual-pot master cylinder and a hydro-boost for that extra oomph.
Body And Interior
With the Jaz Fuel Cell poking into the back of the Jeep through the cargo-bay floor, a set of black cloth Renegade race seats, a 2-inch DOM custom Wiley Moe Racing-built rollcage, full accompaniment of Auto Meter gauges, and a Grant steering wheel to control those BFGs, these guys got it going on. After that, they added the obligatory set of five-point race harnesses, a VHF radio, an in-cab intercom, a GPS, a fire extinguishing system, and window nets (to keep limbs in and debris out) complement the full race interior.
Other body modifications include removing the glass. Tim was telling us they raced with the windshield in it for a while before pulling it out, and the added airflow keeps them cooler and keeps dust down in the cab. The fuel filler was mounted in a custom aluminum panel on the driver side, where the rear side window used to be. The hood got a series of holes cut into it to help with cooling, while the front inner fenders were removed completely for tire clearance. As it is, the tires still kiss the firewall occasionally.
The red, white, and blue colors were put on with Corvette paint, while the graphics were applied by Sam Broslin at StreetGraFX.com in Peoria, Arizona. A custom-made front bumper and light bar put the light down the course with a quartet of KC daylighters.
Good, Bad, & What's It For
This is one Jeep that we were really having problems finding what was bad about it for this section of the feature. Fortunately, with the miles in the cockpit, Tim did it for us: "Reconfigure the bumpstops, put bypass shocks in the rear to combat the fading problem, put a bigger fuel cell in it to feed the hungry 401, and dial some compression out of the motor so we could run just super unleaded instead of full-on race gas." As for us? If we were left to our own with this Jeep, we'd just run it till we hurt ourselves.
Why I Featured It
Some of the Jeeps running this Unlimited class of Jeepspeed are built to the hilt with all the gee-gaw gadgets and widgets going. Most often, they never cross the finish line. Sure, this might not be the most built-to-the-hilt race Jeep in the class, but it's been there, done that, and consequently, it has what it takes to go the distance. In off-road racing, that's so much more important than a quintuple bypass shock and full-on, double-super-whammy, full-hydraulic steering with hamster assist. Plus, a version of it would be attainable to even this lowly magazine editor on a beer and Spam budget.-Pete Trasborg
Hard Facts
Vehicle:'79 Cherokee
Engine:'77 AMC 401ci V-8
Transmission:'79 AMC Turbo 400
Transfer Case:'79 full-time Quadratrac
Suspension:6-inch lift with custom leaves
Axles:Dana 44 (front), Dana 60 (rear)
Wheels:15x8 Superior Industries
Tires:35x12.50R15 BFG ATs(front), 35x12.50R15 BFG MTs(rear)
Built For:Off-road racing
Estimated Cost:$20,000
On the Web
Check out www.jpmagazine.com for some videos of this thing tearing past in a silt bed. Look, I'm a mud guy who likes exploring forests on fire roads. There's no secret I can get bored by rocks. But regardless of what your bent, a high-performance 401 tearing ass past a video camera deserves a click of the old mouse. It's vintage iron with a lead foot, and it's only at www.jpmagazine.com.